


Clipped Wings

by vesselsofhallownest



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Big Bugs AU, Dissection, Gen, Gore, Surgery, surgery without anaesthesia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-03-07 17:45:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18878107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vesselsofhallownest/pseuds/vesselsofhallownest
Summary: All Chapters for the story 'Clipped Wings' for the History Repeats event @bigbugs-au on tumblr.You can also find them in my other work (Of forgotten vessels and broken nails), but there will be differences for any chapters after 2.





	1. Chapter 1

After Aliam had winded himself around the shoulders of the king of Hallownest, they had begun to move down the hall. While he wasn’t sure what ‘tests’ the king had in store for him, he was sure that they couldn’t be that bad.  
They reached one of the smaller rooms in the palace, and he was set down on a table, while the king continued to stand.

“Before I start teaching you how to move in your new body, I need to ask you a few questions.”  
Aliam looked up, before answering,

“Of course, Your Highness.” Aliam quickly curled up once more and focused on the king.  
The Pale King paced the room for a short time, before coming up with his first question,

“Have you had any feelings of, precognition? Feelings of unease, or something else?” The king stared him directly in the face.

Aliam, slightly confused about why this was asked, “Not really, at least I would say. Lately I’ve been having something I would classify as nightmares, but they seem so, so, real. In each one, it seems like someone had been cutting me open, stabbing me with needles and the like.” He took a quick breath before continuing, “It probably seems ridiculous to someone like you, Your Grace.”

The king looks at him, before producing a piece of parchment and taking a quick note, “It’s quite alright, onto the next question. What was it like in your cocoon? Given you made quite a drastic change, I’d assume your experience was different than Ben’s.”

Pondering, for a bit before answering, “It was tiring, if I’m being honest. I didn’t start working on it immediately, like others would’ve. The cocoon itself was quite large, possibly instincts knowing what changes would occur and preparing better than I would’ve if I was conscious.” He takes another quick break, feeling slightly nauseous. “I didn’t look like this when I emerged, though. I was quite a bit smaller, still bigger than before, but more, grub-like as I would put it.”

The king took another note, before asking the next question, “Have you felt strangely after emerging? Stronger, a better connection to magic, anything of that sort.” The king continued to scrawl onto the paper, muttering under his breath. “Take your time.”

“I can’t say I’ve really felt any stronger, though it has been only a few days, perhaps that will change later. I have felt a better connection to using the magic you’ve taught me, it’s just a bit harder to control without enough energy.” These questions were beginning to make him uneasy, surely the king was just worried about him, right?

“And for the last few questions. Do you know how tough your new carapace is? Were you injured when you emerged? Did you have any issues with your legs asides from being unable to balance?” The king scribbled a few more notes on the parchment, before looking up.

“I can’t really say how tough it is, I wasn’t injured when I fell. Despite falling from a decent height I held onto the edge long enough to lower myself down enough to where I might’ve been bruised a small bit. My legs feel weaker, but I’m chalking that up to the new size of my body and not moving very much.”   
These questions were getting worrying, why would the king care about how strong his new carapace was? Perhaps he had an idea of what he was, the king wouldn’t do anything to hurt him, right?

“Aliam, can you give me a measure of how loyal you are? We both know how loyal your colleague is, but how about you?” The Wyrm had set down the parchment and quill, staring him directly in the eye.

“I, well. I would say I’m quite loyal. Not to the extent of Ben, not overbearingly, at least. I wouldn’t betray you, I can confirm that.” Aliam looks around the room nervously, staring at the window behind the king, before looking at the door, which he now noticed had been sealed with one of the new prototype seals for the temple.

“Finally, how much do you trust me?” The king didn’t look away, staring right into his soul.

“I trust you with my life, Your Highness.” Aliam was truly concerned now, the palace he had lived in during his time here didn’t feel safe anymore. He stayed because he though the king would protect him, but that notion faded away the more time that he spent in this cramped room.

“I believe we are done here, but we need a larger room in order to teach you how to move with your new body. Come here.” The king reached out with his hand, nudging Aliam forwards to climb onto him. He did as motioned, and climbed back over his shoulders.


	2. Chapter 2

The walk was longer than expected, but took less time than the walk from his room. Finally, they reached what looked to be an old door, worn and weathered by time.

“Here we are. This room should be of suitable size for you to move around in. Take some time and look around.” Slowly, the king unstrung Aliam from around his shoulders, setting him down on the floor.  
He took in his surroundings, chains covered the walls bearing shackles, and what looked to be a smaller set, a perfect fit for humans. The walls held many, tools, blades that could cut fog, hammers, needles, and scalpels of all sizes.

The smaller shackles looked to have been used recently, unlocked and thrown across the floor. Along with a dripping, black substance.   
He realized what this room was, this was the king’s workshop. Aliam remembers the voidling being taken around the palace by the king, one the floor was some kind of, severed hand? The edge was littered with bite marks. Almost as if the king had chained them there and to escape they chewed it off.

 

“Your Highness, I-I appreciate the concern. But I think I’ll need to take some time to myself. If you’ll excuse me, sir.” With that Aliam turned and tried to run off, or well, crawl would be a better term.  
Of course, without knowing how to move, it wasn’t hard for the king to grab him. The king gripped him around his torso, so tightly that it was constricting, like heavy chains that kept him down. Unconsciously, he bit the king, perhaps some kind of instinct.

The king laughed, it didn’t even crack his carapace.

“I don’t believe you’ll be going anywhere, Aliam. You see, you’re quite unique, compared to the other buglings. I’m sure by now you’ve noticed the similarities between our looks. Which means that you know by now what you are.” The king stared him down, before setting him onto the table and picking up a small, clean set of shackles.  
Chains rattle as the king attaches them to the table, effectively preventing Aliam from moving anymore.

“I will be back in a few minutes. I need to prepare your new ‘room’.” The king looks over his shoulder before leaving and sealing the door.  
It could’ve been anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. The complete silence in the room started to get to him, he couldn’t even hear the steps of the servants that were surely outside in the halls.

And then, finally, the king returned. He didn’t speak as his undid those shackles, and held Aliam around his torso and lower body. His legs were pressed uncomfortably to his sides. He realized that he was powerless to do anything, even if he was some kind of wyrm. The king had more experience and was bigger than he was.

So, eventually he stopped struggling, laying limp in the kings hands. Strangely, there were no servants, or guards wandering the halls, at least none that he could hear footsteps for.  
Eventually, they reached another door, far away from all other rooms.

“You have a roommate. Be warned, they don’t talk very much.” That was the last thing the king said before throwing him into the small room. The floor was covered in the same black substances as the lab, and a figure was huddled in the corner, away from the light in the hallway.  
The door was closed, and Aliam curled himself up in the corner opposite of the other person. Familiar, perhaps it was the voidling he retrieved, it would explain the dark room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The doctor experiments on Aliam, and contemplates a possible escape for both of them.

The king had left Aliam strapped to the table in his workshop, and left for the palace stag station. It didn’t take long for the stag to arrive, and he ordered it to take him to Dirtmouth.  
He had heard that the small town had an accident involving the voidling still at the palace, and that someone had retrieved a reputable doctor from Deepnest. If this doctor was as good as they said they were, they’d be able to help him with the experiments involving him.

After a short amount of time he arrived in the town, and walked into a nearby cartographers shop. It wasn’t surprising to see the look of shock on their faces. “Excuse me, I was told that there was a doctor in town? I need to speak with them for a matter most urgent.” The king spoke calmly, which he gathered unnerved the other two.

“Oh! Of course, follow me.” The taller of the pair exited the building, motioning him to one of the larger houses in the town with the lights visible.  
The king was silent as they walked, eventually being motioned in by the shopkeeper.  
“She should be in there, we’ve had a few incidents recently so she may be working with them.” They turned around before heading back into their shop, shooting glances over their shoulder at him.

The Wyrm walks into the house, observing the doctor taking care of her patients, one larger bug sat on the bed, bandaged.  
He couldn’t see the other patient, but there was another bug hovering over her shoulder, whispering questions about what she was doing.

“Is there something you need?” The doctor asked him, not looking up from their current task, uncorking a vial and pouring it out onto something.

“You need to come with me, I have a matter that is most urgent.” The king spoke, observing the other bugs in the room who had been staring at him since he had entered the home. “One of the humans I have been taking care of ‘cocooned’ recently, so to speak. They have a crack on their carapace that hasn’t been healing in the few days they’ve been out.”

"Cocooned..?" The doctor turned around, realizing who she’d been speaking to, before continuing, "I'm fairly certain humans don’t cocoon the same way a grub would- are you certain..? She quickly turned around finishing up what she had been doing before returning to face him. "Besides, I’m likely no match for one of your court doctors- why ask me for help?"

“My court members did not require a doctor until recently, and as I’ve heard that you were in Dirtmouth, I came here to retrieve you for some assistance.” The king looked the other directly in the eye, “We need to go, now. I am not sure why their carapace isn’t healing, but it can’t be any good.”

"I apologize, your highness, but I cant leave to take a look personally. A cracked carapace may be cause for concern, but the way you described it, it is most certainly not life threatening. I have two patients here that are in far more need of help." The doctor dug through their bag, before retrieving a small vial of diluted acid. "If you apply this carefully to the surface of the carapace and push it together, then bandage it, the crack should seal. I'm sure one such as yourself would have no problem doing something so simple."  
The doctor turns back to the human they were currently looking over, “Now if you would please leave, I need to focus on saving this young one's life."

The king looks at her blankly, taking the vial but not moving from his spot, “While it will be useful, I am afraid that you will need to come with me. I am not above destroying that pitiful creature, as far as I’m concerned, they’re already dead.” He took a few steps forward, causing the doctor to stiffen as she stood in front of the dish. “Get your things and follow me.”

The other patient, began to stand up, before being gently pushed back down by the doctor, “It’s fine, don’t do anything that could leave you hurt more than you already are.” After reassuring that they’d be fine, they addressed the other bug, “Oro, watch over the human.” she dug through her bag and pulled out several vials of blue liquid before handing it to the other. “Every few hours make sure to refill the container, and don’t be afraid to use all of it.”

They slung their bag over their shoulder before speaking once more, “If they die, it’s not your fault. It’s mine.” While they spoke, they glared at the king,, likely for disturbing their work.

“Perfect, lets go.” The king motioned for them to head out first, before following behind them and entering the stag station.  
It was a long trip back, silent save for the running of their ride. After some time, they arrived back at the palace, while the king led them into the room where they’d be working.

“Stay here, I need to retrieve the human.” He closed the door and locked it with a seal, before walking down to the room containing Aliam and the voidling.

Surprisingly, the small cell was spotless, completely clear of any blood or void that he had expected to cover the floor. The two were sitting in the opposite corners, with Aliam staring tensely at the voidling, afraid to move from the other corner.  
He doesn’t feel the need to say anything as he scoops them up, not willing to risk his new experiment. There was no struggle this time, no clawing at his hands, perhaps he had broken its will, which wasn’t as hard as he expected it to be.

The king sped through the halls, luckily without needing to move around servants as none were present, dismissed to their quarters hours beforehand. He realized the doctor would be suspicious when they saw their new patient didn’t have any cracks in its carapace that had been mentioned. Slowly, he rolled back the sleeve of his robe, and pressed his claws deeply into its carapace. It was a good thing that it wasn’t strong enough to wriggle free as he pressed just deep enough to shatter in a few places.

Reentering his lab, carrying his new subject while closing the door behind him, sealing it to make sure there isn’t any chance at an attempted escape.  
Chaining it down onto the table, setting metal clasps over its lower body to prevent flailing. He snatches a scalpel off the wall, before handing it to the doctor. As he predicted, the doctor took notice of the cracked carapace, with a slightly worried expression. Of course, they weren’t here to treat that.

“You are to cut its stomach open. I will not bloody my hands trying to do that myself. I need to observe its pain threshold and how fast it will heal on its own.” The king looks at them, watching them reach into their bag to grab what was likely various medical supplies. “You won’t be needing those, everything that is required is in this room.” He takes the bag from her before setting it down onto one of the many tables that lined the room.

“Are you sure?” The doctor looked at the human on the table, “I don’t think that would be very wise to do. It very well may kill them if not properly taken care of.”

The king looks at them, as if the criticism was unexpected, “I am absolutely certain. You will not need anything more than what has already been provided for you. Let’s begin before I lose my patience and find someone of more use.” The king checks the shackles to make sure it was kept to the table during operation, before stepping back to let the doctor work.

“Make an incision on its stomach, on the non-human half.” He ordered, watching her sharply, like he was looking for any possible errors she might make.  
She wasn’t going to risk her life, even for her new patient. The kingdom had many bugs that needed to be treated each day, and her possible demise was not an option.

Slowly, she lowered the scalpel to their lower half. Slicing cleanly and carefully, but fast enough as to not drag out any pain they might have felt. Wincing as they screamed, over and over in short bursts, crying from the sheer pain.  
Regardless, she kept working, blocking out the pained screaming, slicing until they were able to see the humans insides.

Strangely, the human shared some anatomy with the centipede residents of Deepnest, but it was just small, subtle similarities. Perhaps this is why the king wanted to drag her here, which didn’t excuse him pulling her away from a dying patient.

The king pushed her out of the way, before taking several tools from the shelves. He waited until the screaming had died down into pathetic sobs, before starting to prod at its bones and what visible organs that he could see.  
It wasn’t screaming this time, at the very least. But the pained noises they made had the doctor wincing and looking away.

After nearly a half hour of the king ‘experimenting’ on the human, he was finally done. Placing the tools that had been used into a small basin on another table, he tosses the doctor a roll of bandages. “Its pain threshold is extremely low, if the crying, screaming, and thrashing was any indicator. Something that I will need to work on fixing. Bandage that thing up, we will come back to it in a few weeks to see how it has healed. You will be escorted to your quarters once you are finished here.”

The king stayed behind for a few minutes, before exiting the lab, presumably to head back to his own quarters for the rest of the day. Carefully, she wrapped the silk bandage around their wounds, doing her best not to get her claws caught in the fabric. They hissed and squirmed, but eventually settled down after some time.When she was finished, she infused it with a bit of soul, even if she was unable to get their injuries properly cleaned up. “I am so so sorry for doing this to you. If I had any say in the matter these tests wouldn’t be happening.” She whispered quietly, in case the servants the king had sent were also told to report anything to him.

Cyfre finally finished bandaging the human, before unchaining them and picking them up off the table. She was greeted by two of the kings servants, both staring at the human that she was holding. Silently, they turned around and led her somewhere, halfway through their walk one of them grabbed the human from her arms, likely to take them to wherever the king was keeping them.

On their way, she worried for the patients she had been forced to leave in the village. The elderly bug was stable enough to where he didn’t need constant care, and as long as he kept resting and wasn’t doing anything taxing, he’d be fine. The human, on the other hand... The Nailmaster, if he followed her directions, should be able to keep them stable enough until she was able to return to continue treating them.

They reached their destination, a short walk from the lab had them arriving there in minutes. The other servant gestured to a door, unlocking it before walking back down the hall.

She was still thinking while she quickly entered her room to set her bag down. The king seemed to think that this human was stronger than any other in the kingdom, perhaps putting too much faith into a creature so small. But maybe he was right, after all, the king was known for his foresight.

But to leave them cut open, with only a bandage stopping them from bleeding all over the floor, was too cruel. She wasn’t even to give them something to ease the pain they might’ve felt during the procedure.

Maybe, just maybe, if she was quick enough, she’d be able to find that other servant and track down to where the king was keeping the human. Then she’d be able to patch them up properly, at least enough to where they’ll feel better. She’d have to be subtle, the king would realize something was off if it healed too quickly, looked to pristine.


	4. Chapter 4

Something didn’t feel right to Cyfre, just leaving someone to heal like that on their own, with no treatment or care. She wasn’t even allowed to clean the cut at all. After making sure that no other servants or guards were wandering the halls, she darted in the direction of the servant that carried the human. Hopefully she wasn’t too late, and the servant hadn’t already put them back.

Luckily, she caught them just in time, wincing as they threw them in the room. They servant turned the other way, and she sneaked closer to the door, until she was close enough to open it and duck in quickly.

There was one more in the room, sitting in the opposite corner, curled in a blanket. They paid no heed to her as she walked carefully to the corner containing her new patient. She sat down her bag, taking a salve out of it, as well as a new roll of bandages. She gently uncurled them, needing to be able to remove the old bandage. She spoke as she worked. “I am so, so, sorry about what I had to do earlier. I didn’t have a choice in the matter, but I don’t blame you if you don’t trust me, hate me even. But know that I want to help you.”

She carefully applied the salve to the edges of the wound, and a bit more surrounding it, before waiting a few moments to make sure it set. She cleaned the wound as best as she could with a small vial of water in her bag, before carefully wrapping the new bandages around them. As soon as she made sure they were alright, she ducked out of the room, dashing back to her own. Tossing the bandages in the trash bin, she sat her bag back down, and tried to relax.

A week later, the king summoned her again, she hoped that they had enough time to at least heal in a way where the king wouldn’t be suspicious. When she walked in, the human wasn’t on the table like before, but the king was in the room taking things off the shelves and setting them nearby, before grabbing a notepad and quill.

He paid no mind to her as he scribbled down more notes, likely from the previous test. Until a servant entered the room, carrying the human. They were struggling, clawing at the servants hands, trying to get them to loosen their grip on them. The king struggled at getting them back on the table, as the squirmed away from him as he tried to fasten the shackles and chains.

He turned around for a split second, and it tried to run, scrambling off the table and fluttering its wings, managing to get high enough to try and fly out a hole in the door. It didn’t move fast enough, the king caught it easily, clamping his claws around its torso. He slammed it onto the table, enough to disorient it and give him time to snap the shackles around it.

He headed over to the table, grabbing a scalpel from it, before pinning down its wings. He sliced into them, not a careful, clean cut. But tearing into them, he could hear them split as he did so. The king didn’t stop until each and everyone of its wings was nearly shred to pieces. The thing wailed and sobbed, tears streaming down its face due to the immense pain it felt.

He didn’t particularly care what the doctor though of this, they had to follow his orders. They couldn’t question him on his methods, no matter how much they wanted to. He could have them executed at the blink of an eye.

“Now that we’re done with that, I want you to observe this, take notes.” He summoned several daggers made from SOUL, before driving one into the hard carapace over its stomach. He shoved it down with force, the cracking was so loud, but the screaming all but drowned it out completely. It didn’t stop until the king could see its organs. “I am leaving this up to you. Remove the carapace from its insides, and then take some of the tools of study its organs in the human half.”

She stood up from her seat, taking a pair of forceps off the table. Cyfre had to work slowly, no matter the pain that it would cause, it wouldn’t be any better if she punctured something vital. Each individual shard had to be removed slowly, and she winced as they sobbed and screamed every time she pulled out a piece. Around an hour later, she had managed to pull out all of the shards, and was shoved back by the king.

At least he was careful, she gave him that. Perhaps not wanting to damage this human, he seemed to think that they were special in some way. He wouldn’t risk them being careless, something she couldn’t say for his less fortunate humans.

He prodded at the organs carefully, using his other arms to hold his notepad and write down anything he discovered, reactions, how organs may work. After he was finished poking around, he sat the tool down and finished up an anatomy sketch that he had made the last time. The king had finished what he needed to today. “Use that solution you gave me to heal the carapace. It will need to be fully healed for our next tests.” He plucked the vial out of a drawer and handed it to her, before leaving the lab.

She didn’t grab her bag, she knew this would be much more painful than it needed to be, but there wasn’t a choice. Either she could fix it and let them heal, or let them die. At this point she wasn’t sure what would’ve been a better option. But rather than risk her head, she went to work.

Screaming and howling, struggling against the shackles as she tried to work, eventually she had to hold them down to continue. She could hear them sobbing, but she ignored it, trying to wrap this up as cleanly and quickly as possible. She hadn’t even noticed the servant enter the room, fidgeting near the door as they waited for her to finish working.

She wrapped the bandage around them, making sure it was tugged firmly, before sticking it together with a small bit of web. She hurried out of there as soon as possible, hearing them unshackle them and close the door. At the very least they were treated properly and would be fine until the next round of tests started.


	5. Chapter 5

Aliam had thankfully been given time to heal. It didn’t take nearly as much time as before, of which he was grateful for. He was still upset with her, of course. But he began to notice the patterns in which the king worked. He’d always replicate each and every test, even if it would always yield the same results, unless he found something new to try. Even if it failed he’d still continue, determined to find a way to make it work.

For the most part, he stayed in the corner of the cell. Finding it too painful to try to walk or even move very much. Every now and then, he’d get up, and practice moving around. It never worked, he knew that, and he always ended up a little more bruised than before, but it didn’t hurt to keep trying.

Maybe he could try and make an escape once more. Sure, his last attempts may have failed, but third time’s the charm, right? His wings were in tatters, and he was sure he’d never be able to fly, perhaps he’d find some way to fix them. No matter how long it’d take him to get the hang of, he’d learn to move around. The king had a shockingly similar body type to him, and if he could just get some time to study him, he’d surely be able to learn.

The door open as he contemplated, shaking him out of his thoughts. They were probably back to fetch him for more of those horrible tests. Something he had come to accept. Perhaps it was his fault, he’d always wanted to be more like the king, cold and calculating. But it wasn’t as if he had been blind to the cruelty the king had the capacity for, it just surprised him once he became the target.

He was picked up by whoever had entered the room, not as harshly as the king would have, but they weren’t gentle either. He couldn’t blame them, the king was known for given disproportionate punishments for not obeying his orders fast enough. He was swiftly carried to the lab, something he dreaded every day, with the doctor and king already waiting inside.

He didn’t even struggle this time while he was chained down, he knew it wouldn’t do him any good. The king was faster and stronger than he’d ever be. Even if he did, he knew the king had his reasons, it was for the greater good, and he knew that. It wasn’t as if the king no longer cared for him, right? After all these tests were said and done, he knew he’d be allowed time to heal, and then he could return to his job.

Today was no different from the previous test, albeit in a different location, but the same process. Being stabbed in the back until he crumbled and shattered, screaming and crying along the way. Though at this point, the crying and screaming were just reflexive, he knew what was coming each time he came in for these tests.

At the very least, he wasn’t being cut open and left to bleed, or endure the painful process of melting his carapace back together. Everything suddenly came to a grinding halt, he could feel them trying to jab at his back, but something was stopping them, deflecting whatever tool they had decided to use.

He heard the king speak, “How... unusual. It seems we have discovered a defense mechanism, however strange as it may be. Hidden spines under its carapace, an interesting trait, something I haven’t seen before. They seem to deflect any tools we have.” The king tapped on one of his spines with the scalpel he had been using. “Maybe, just maybe, there’s a tool that I have in here that can get rid of these, they’re quite troublesome.”

He heard the clanging of metal and screeching wheels as the king rolled over a tabled covered in various tools. Trying nearly every single tool on the table, each one being deflected. He heard a familiar sound, one he had grown used to. The kings daggers, something that had been taught to him. Aliam wasn’t quite sure if his spines would protect him from weapons of otherworldly materials.

This time, he reacted, with true emotions for the first time in awhile. He screamed, louder and louder as the daggers pierced deep into his back, not even cracking his carapace, just cutting into it. Not even the spines could deflect this, as it passed right through them. He couldn’t even struggle, or move. The daggers made sure of this, nearly piercing right through him. He wailed, tears streaming down his face, any time the king moved a dagger, he cried harder.

He could hear the king writing, most likely scrawling more notes. He paused, and Aliam heard him put the quill and notepad back down. The daggers in his back dissipated, leaving him gasping for breath between sobs. His respite was cut short, and he felt the king grab his back and pull. His screaming by that point had died down into gasps, but came back in full force upon the removal of the spine.

Blood gushed from the wound, running down his back and pooling around him on the table. He could hear the writing begin again, then stop. The scalpel was back, prodding the area where his spine used to be, and pushing slightly at the carapace. He managed to steel himself against the pain, tolerating it as the king kept jabbing him.

The scalpel was finally removed, and he crumbled onto the table, covered in his own blood. He could hear the door open, and someone leave, most likely the king. That just left him and the doctor in the room. It sounded like they were trying to talk to him, but his voice escaped him. Mind fogged with pain, he barely noticed as his carapace was melted together again, but thankfully it was almost over. The soft bandages were wrapped around his torso, and he could feel them soaking up the blood that still poured from his wounds.

They kept trying to speak to him, but he was so close to passing out. He could barely process their words, or anything happening around him. He wasn’t even aware he had already been brought back to his cell until the bright lights faded away. Aliam crawled back into his corner as best as he could, before trying to curl up and rest. Maybe this way, they wouldn’t be able to pick him up the next time, even though he realized it wasn’t going to help, it gave him a bit of hope.

The palace seemed so bright compared to the dark cell. It was comforting, being in the darkness as opposed to the blinding lights of the lab.


	6. Chapter 6

The silence was unbearable. Sure, after some time he had gotten used to it, but generally he was being consistently taken out for testing. Even if he didn’t like it, it was still better than sitting in a quiet cell all day until he fell asleep. But, perhaps the king had finished his testing, and was just finalizing his notes. It gave him some small amount of hope that this was all over, that everything would go back to normal.

At the very least, Aliam had more time to rest. Given that the past month or so had been a living hell, with many sleepless nights. After a few days, he let his guard drop, and slept through most of the day, only waking up during brief periods before he was out again. Those wounds still bothered him, but the doctor wasn’t coming to check up on him, so he’d suffer through it until they managed to fully heal.

There wasn’t much to do in that lonely cell of his. Even if his ‘roommate’ could speak, the king would surely kill him for ruining his plan, something he didn’t want. His wounds were still too painful for him to comfortably move around with, so he’d spend the days trying to see if he could get each individual leg to work, at least once he was healed enough he could try standing again.

He didn’t hate the king, despite all these experiments. He may hate the tests, but well, who wouldn’t? Being shackled down to a table isn’t the most comfortable thing. Once again, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Likely for more testing, or to grab the voidling to finally proceed with the sealing, at least the king had managed to restrain that moth to the mountains.

Two of the kingsmoulds entered, along with the king himself, a rare sight indeed. They picked him up and carried him out of the room, slamming the door behind them, causing him to jump. Being in complete isolation would do that to you. They passed multiple servants and courtiers on the way out, each of them stopping to stare before continuing along, if not at a faster pace.

It wasn’t an uncommon sight at all, for them to see a guard or two patrolling the halls, but to have the king leading them along, that was something of interest. The walk to the outside was short, as they didn’t stop moving at all, servants moving out of their way. Aliam was overjoyed when they got outside, perhaps they’d finally let him go, and allow him back once he was healed and rested. They didn’t stop as they reached the gates, he wasn’t sure why, but a feeling of dread came over him.

He didn’t realize where they were headed until it was far too late to run.

Aliam didn’t care how much it hurt for him to struggle, fighting the grasp he was stuck in. If he could just get out, no matter how much it hurt, he’d be able to make a run for it into one of the many gaps that they couldn’t get him in. Try as he may, the kingsmoulds were much stronger than him. Unsurprising, given their make, and of course, the king had made them exactly as he needed them to be, strong and unforgiving.

He struggled for the entire way down, in a hopeless effort that he’d be able to slip out, even if he had to go further down to escape them. Anything was better than the fate he was surely destined for. They reached the door, marked with the brand of the king and his own unique seal, something he had been taught personally by the king.

The stairs down had been repaired, although hidden from sight, to prevent any voidling not strong enough to reach the top from escaping and tricking the king that they were the vessel he sought. They marched down quickly, the sound of scraping metal jarring to his ears. He was quite accustomed to the abyss, given that he did spend a large majority of his time down here. He may not have been very successful in keeping the voidlings contained, but he did do his job as asked in retrieving a pure vessel.

They stopped on the bridge over the sea of void, and he was sure he knew what was going to happen now. Aliam didn’t want to lose all the memories he had made here, there was already a gap in his memory from when he arrived. He still didn’t know what had happened to his sibling, they just went missing one day. Perhaps he was wrong in dragging them both to the palace and staying there, how long ago they started living there was unknown, but it had to be a few years at the very least.

Before he knew it, tears started streaming down his face, quiet sobs breaking the cold silence. He fought for just a little longer, he knew how hopeless it was to attempt escape now, but he wasn’t going to give up without making their jobs a little harder. Pushing and shoving as he tried one last time to escape, sometimes even trying to grasp at the railings, though it was too far for him to reach.

It didn’t take much thought for them to drop him over the ledge, and he flailed as he was dropped. The sea felt heavy as he sunk in, pulling him down towards the bottom, hoping for a quick death wasn’t an option here. There wasn’t any fighting or struggling to resurface anymore.


	7. Chapter 7

Cyfre was somewhat concerned. The past few weeks had gone slowly enough, without her being summoned by the king for more tests or even to check up on her new patient. Earlier in the week there had been quite a commotion in the halls, the chattering of the servants could be heard even through the walls of her room.

So, leaving her room, she decided to search for the king. Perhaps he could shed some light on the situation, and why no tests had been done as of late. Out of curiosity, she decided to quickly take a look in the room with two of the humans in it. When she reached it and opened the door, only one was present. Unusual, but perhaps they had been taken in for less dangerous testing that didn’t require her help.

She walked through the halls, moving past various servants as to not bump into them and to try and get to the lab faster. Not surprisingly, the king had already arrived in the room, scribbling down various things on a spare piece of parchment, several vials, empty and not, sat next to him. Though there was no signs of the human being present today. The table had been wiped clean of any blood, along with the various tools used.

The king didn’t even look up from his notes, though he still greeted her as she entered, “Did you need something, Doctor?” He scrawled for a bit longer before setting down the quill and standing to look at her.

Cyfre straightened her back, giving her a bit of time to think. “I was wondering where the human was, after all I had not been summoned in quite some time. And I don’t see them in here, none of the servants could tell me if they had seen them either.”

He paused for a second, “That human. They were required for a test that I felt no need to inform you of. Nothing medical was required, so neither were you.” He tapped his claws against his arm, as if debating on telling her something more, “I know you won’t betray me, it’s too dangerous for you to do so, as you’re potentially risking the lives of your patients in that rundown village. The kingsmoulds and I took them down into the abyss, I am testing on what happens when a human like that is exposed to void, and for now I am waiting for them to crawl back out of it themselves. If they don’t, then the test has failed and I will continue on with a new subject.”

Now the doctor certainly wasn’t surprised, just about everyone in the kingdom had heard about the first experiments the king conducted with void. Using his own children to seal away a god. Still, it shocked her to hear this, something like that in wounds that wouldn’t have even finished healing over could most likely kill them. “How could you? You would just throw someone away like that, I can’t believe you.” Cyfre sneered at him, before realizing her outburst and trying to calm herself down as quickly as possible.

The king was seemingly unfazed by her small out burst, just stared blankly at her, “This was something that needed to be done. I understand how hard it can be to just ‘throw away’ such a valuable subject like that, but otherwise we would not be able to learn from the outcome.”

His answer was not much better, but she would try and pry for the location of the abyss, if she could just convince him she wanted to study more about it. “Well, if these tests are going to be conducted, I’d like to study the abyss more myself, it may prove valuable to your endeavors.” If he would just give her this vital piece of information, perhaps she’d be able to help them escape, along with the other human still trapped in that cell.

He appeared to be somewhat conflicted, before finally coming to a conclusion, “You’ve already sworn your loyalty to me by coming here, and if you are truly interesting in doing more tests, it wouldn’t hurt to tell you. But remember, I can and will find out if you use this information against me, and the price you pay will be your life.” He picked up the piece of parchment, before walking to the door, “When you leave the palace grounds, head down a fair bit. It shouldn’t take too much effort to find the door afterwards, it is marked with my own seal. You are dismissed for now, but are to take a guard with you should you decide to travel down. The basin can be a very dangerous place the lower you get.”

He left the room, with the doctor following close behind, walking down the hall opposite from her. At least with this information, she could try and remake her original escape plans, more difficult now when she had to bring one of the kings guards with her.

Everything was so dark and cold here. They could barely see even a foot in front of them, surrounded by the jet black waters. There wasn’t any movement here, though every now and again, they’d be able to catch ripples above him, and a blurred figure standing on the edge. When they looked down, sometimes there would be large, white eyes staring back up at them, entrancing to look at. But when they moved closer, they would close and fade away.

 

They could feel their body change slowly, feeling it sink into the bandages, the wounds below them filling up with the substance. Even in places where their body wasn’t damaged and scarred, they felt it slowly creep in beneath the surface, seeping into them. The waters eventually seemed to become lighter, no longer dragging them to the bottom and keeping them there. With a bit of difficulty, they figured out a way to move around, float in the sea they were still stuck in.

They would tuck their legs close to their body, twisting and turning until they managed to perfect their movements, swimming effortlessly. But, they could feel themselves losing what little mind they had left, thoughts slipping out of their grasp. They’d already forgotten their name, who they were before. Their old aches and pains didn’t bother them anymore, nerves melted away into nothing. At first it may have stung, but now that feeling was gone.

It was far too cold here.

Eventually, all but instinct had slipped from their mind, now just swimming through the sea. Something called them back to the bottom of the sea, and they searched for it, ready to tear it apart when they found it. That pull moved day to day, and they never could find it, but they’d persist, it was all that they had the capacity to think about now.

One day that pull moved farther than before, up onto the mountain of heads that covered what little ground may have been present once. They couldn’t get up, scrambling and clawing their way up them, before losing their grip and sliding back down. Even what little light their was blinded them every time they tried to pull themselves out, and eventually it became too much, and they slunk back into the sea once more.

Something was wrong with them. They didn’t know what, but it hurt. They were wounded, not that it was visible, their blood was the same ink black as the sea. It was sharp, almost as if something was cutting their mouth open. And eventually, it did. They had only realized it when they couldn’t feel the inside of their mouth anymore. These new… appendages, were sharp to the touch, and they could move at a whim. To them, there wasn’t a purpose for them, but couldn’t find a way to retract them.

That pull hadn’t move from the shore, and it got harder to resist the more they ignored it. Eventually it became enough to where it was unbearable, and they dragged themselves up, no matter how many times they failed to grip properly, they wouldn’t stop until they got up there.

Eventually, they managed to get high enough to where they could sink their claws into one of the many cracked heads, and heaved themselves up, legs laid uselessly at their sides. Making it up the shoreline, and then slowly dragging themselves with their hands across the ground, they reached a flatter surface of ground.

It felt like something was pulling them up, guiding them onto their legs, which had previously laid useless against them. They managed to stand, legs wobbly and threatening to slide out beneath them, but for now, they could stand. Guided forward, by something else or instinct, was unknown. Stumbling and tripping, legs bending at strange angles that should by all means, injure them. They’d stand up and try again, taking each step at a time, until they were able to walk, albeit slowly, around naturally.

That pull had died down, but they could still feel it thrumming in what remained of their heart. Now, it told them to go up, escape whatever confined them here. They couldn’t, wings laid across their back, shredded and useless, too weak to even try moving. Then, it came to them, the first thought they had in however long they’d been down here. Slowly, they pushed and heaved loose shells from various places, using smaller shards that they could carry to stabilize and elevate them, until they had built a mediocre staircase up.

It would start to crumble and fall the moment they stepped on, so they had to do this quickly. As long as they were able to get their arms and first set of legs up, they could keep going. So, after taking a few breaths, they leap as best as they could, scrambling onto the first shell, and then the next. They got progressively faster, having to pick up the pace as they felt the brittle foundation shift beneath them. They stopped at the final one, reaching up to grab the edge with their arms, before lifting themselves up, front legs scrabbling to dig into the sides.

They made it up the first platform, before lifting themselves up on the last set of legs, balancing with their tail, and reaching for the next one. Repeating this process over and over again, sometimes managing to grab onto a stray thorn or vine and pull themselves up that way, finally they had reached the last platform.

It was easy to reach this one, all it took was them reaching up their arms, and grabbing on again. Their legs weren’t able to find purchase on the smooth stone, and they had used what little strength and energy they had left to haul themselves up, and sprawl onto the stone.

They were so tired.

Dozing off without a second thought, they woke up some time later, with more energy than they had before. It was difficult for them to get back up again, struggling some more with their legs, but they managed to get themselves to the doorway, leaving the sea behind and exiting. They didn’t get very far, something picked them up and started swiftly carrying them away.

It was too bright here. It hurt so much, even when they closed their eye it wouldn’t go away. Eventually they curled into themselves, shutting their eye tightly, covering their face with their arms and hands. It didn’t get any better the further they went, and the room they ended up in was blindingly bright, to the point where it felt like they were burning.

Even if it wasn’t visible pain, they collapsed all the same, on a cold metal table.


	8. Chapter 8

It didn’t take long for them to be woken up again, the snap of metal ringing in their ears. They weren’t quite sure what was going on, but they struggled to get up, being restrained not just by the shackles, something else as well. Even in the time they had spent passed out on the table, none of the lights were turned off, and it was much more painful that anything else they’d experienced. One of the lanterns was moved directly above them, and causing them to hiss in pain, trying to move away.

The king watched these movements with intrigue, which was seemingly made more frantic from the light he had hung above it instead of having the lanterns spread out around the room as he normally kept them. He unhooked the lantern from above the table, held it up for a few more seconds, then lowered it onto the ground. Almost immediately, the movements stopped for the most part. It did still move for a while longer, something he chalked up to the shackles, having not been restrained for so long and then being chained down onto a table would cause that.

He scrawled down a short note on a stray piece of parchment he had sat on the table beforehand, and then reached for one of the scalpels laying next to it. He’d need to be much more careful, as today for this experiment, he didn’t summon the doctor to assist him. He’d need to study the effects of void on its insides now, as the affected areas outside were fairly self explanatory. Instead of using daggers this time, he took a small mallet and chisel out of a drawer. Strange tools for what one could consider a surgery, but it was important to be careful and precise with this, especially performing this on his own.

Before proceeding, he set the lumaflies in the other lanterns to sleep, save for one off in the corner of the room. Slowly, he rest the chisel onto the carapace, before taking the mallet to it, cracking it in multiple spots before it was just barely holding together. He plucked several of the larger shards out, just enough to see what had occurred on the inside. At the very least, there was no sobbing and screaming as he looked at its organs, they had changed quite a bit, at least since the last time he did any tests.

Every now and again, he’d take a cloth just to the outside of the wound, to wipe away any… ‘blood’ that may ooze out of its torso. He wouldn’t touch it with his hands, but after sometime it would eventually obscure what he could see. All of the organs inside were pitch black, something that was to be expected, but a lot of them looked like they were missing pieces of them. Almost like some of the organs had been melted slightly, he could pinpoint their heart, the worst area affected, with holes in the side oozing black blood, sometimes he’d see a flash of white.

It was grotesque really, seeing its heart melted out of shape and filled with holes, only for it to keep beating as strongly as it did before. It didn’t slow down like it used to when he had previously done these tests.

The king had watched the doctor do this many times, and without the reaction of pain, he’d be able to do it with ease. He stood up to retrieve a vial of the acid solution they had used to melt it’s carapace back together, but he’d need to do some extra work. Gently, he took the fragments he had moved earlier, and set them back together with the rest, before pouring the solution onto the cracks. He’d press each piece back together as he deemed it to be melted enough. Once he was done, he took a roll of bandages from the side, wrapping it around the creature, until it was able to be tied into a knot to keep it in place.

He was about to unshackle it, ready to be handed over to a guard, when the noise started. It began quietly, before gaining in volume, like the sound of claws being drug down a chalkboard. Grabbing the piece of parchment again, he took a few more notes. After moving closer, he could see that each individual plate on its back would scrape together, no doubt the source of that noise. The king took as many notes as he could before the sound became almost unbearable, calling for one of the guards to unshackle it and return it to it’s cell, he left the room.

He’d give it a few days, a week at most, to heal from its wounds before testing would come back in full force. Though perhaps, keeping in that cell wasn’t the most efficient way of doing this. He could certainly send down a guard or two to fill one of the beakers in the lab with void, and confine them to that so he didn’t have to wait the time it took for it to be transported to the lab. For now, he’d go and rest, that noise giving him an unpleasant headache, it would be decided tomorrow.


	9. Chapter 9

At the start of the day, the king had already arrived in the laboratory, waiting with the human who had curled into a ball on the table. The light seemed to keep it from moving, perhaps it sapped the energy from void entities? It would offer a reason as to why his original plan with the vessels had failed. It shouldn’t take long until his guards were back with the container of void, he’d need it in order to keep this creature functional for each test he’d have to perform later on.

Asides from the guards, he was also waiting for the doctor to arrive, he had called one of the servants over the night before, to inform them they needed to be in the lab by the morning. At least it was still very earlier, so he’d give them some leeway for being late to arrive. While he waited, he read over the notes he had made, changing some details every now and again if he needed to do so.

The guards arrived first, carrying the beakers carefully, as to not spill its contents onto the floor. As a precautionary measure, the king had asked for them to fill two different containers with the substance, he’d recently acquired a new test subject, this one had willingly drank the void he had been trying to take from it. If he was to hold this one still, he’d need something to contain it in as well.

Both containers were sat on a table against the wall with a light thud, not hard enough for it to splash over, but these guards were not particularly careful. After he had dismissed them back to their positions outside the doorway, he carefully lifted the creature up to set it in the larger beaker. It took a bit more work to actually get them over to the container, but he barely needed to do anything once he got closer. They were already trying to climb inside of the beaker, most likely to escape the lights he had on n the room.

He loosened his grip just a tad, and let them crawl into the beaker. It certainly saved him a lot of trouble, but he’d still need to have that other human retrieved from its cell. Calling one of the guards from outside, he ordered them to retrieve the other. It may take a while longer, being deeper into the palace than the other cells, but he was willing to wait.

A few minutes later, the doctor had finally arrived, walking in and standing a small distance away from the table containing the beakers. He sat down his notes before moving closer to address them. “Tests will be resuming shortly, but I would like for you to see the aftermath of the last test I had performed without you. The results weren’t as desirable as I had wanted, but we’ll have to make do.” Grabbing the container off the other table, he placed it in front of the doctor on the operating table. He tapped on the glass, before waiting to see if it would cause the creature inside to react.

As, expected, it swam closer to the side, before tapping back slowly. “This, is the human we have been experimenting with for these past few months. Quite a lot has changed since its been exposed to the void. The biggest changes are inside, to its organs, but the outside has also been visibly changed. Now for the reason why it’s in this beaker, these void entities seem to have a natural aversion to light, to the point of where if it’s strong enough that it can almost completely immobilize them. Since I need to keep this one functioning for future tests, I will have to store it in something that blocks out all light. For now, I will be removing it so we can better observe its behavior.”

Carefully, he grabs the human from the beaker, before setting it down on the table. It didn’t even move this time around, no recoiling or anything. It was quite worrying, maybe he had gone too far with this? Then, it started hissing, it wasn’t the ear-splitting sound as before, but still annoying. He moved another light over, noticing that whenever he did, the hissing got louder and louder. Slowly, he reached out to grab it again, maybe putting it back in the beaker would help?

That was a mistake. As soon as he reached out to grab it, the spines slid out from underneath the carapace, and trying to crawl away sluggishly. Grabbing it by its upper torso, he quickly placed them back in the beaker, he was not willing to risk his chance with a creature like this. He wasn’t willing to experiment on himself, so this was the next best thing he’d get to doing so. “As you can see, its reactions to the lights we have on in here, have seemingly gotten worse. I will have most lights in this room turned off for our future tests to prevent any outbursts later on.” 

He didn’t let the doctor speak as he dismissed them, before leaving the room himself. He knew that now he’d need to find a way to prevent it from acting up again when they worked on later testing. At the very least, he’s found a way to keep it from running off and escaping into the palace. Though, perhaps with the lights it wouldn’t even want to leave it’s container, making his job a bit easier in keeping it contained before testing. For now he could relax, the testing was almost over now.

 

Luckily for Cyfre, she was able to stay in the lab even after the king left. No one would force her to leave, especially if she had decided on trying to experiment more with the human and take notes. She turned off each light slowly, leaving just one on in the far corner of the room, before gently taking them out of the jar and setting them down on the table. “Hey, are you alright? I’m not sure what he did to you, but I want to help you.”

They moved slowly, looking at her, but they didn’t respond, staring blankly at her. It was even more concerning, they had looked at her, but didn’t show any sign that they even understood what had been said. This definitely wasn’t normal, even though they never really spoke to her before, something that she wouldn’t blame them for, they still talked no matter how infrequently they did. “Do you just not want to speak to me? I understand if you don’t want to, especially after all those tests you were put through.” Cyfre waited patiently for a response, but she never got one. They’d look at her while she was speaking, and just stare, like they couldn’t even see her.

“Well, anyways, I’ve got a plan to get both of us out of here. I thought I should inform you before proceeding. I can come get you later in the day, when the servants are no longer roaming the halls and the guards have stopped patrolling so frequently. The king has put his trust in me, so if we get caught, I just need to tell them I’m taking you for an experiment.” They didn’t even turn to look at her any more, perhaps they were done for today.

She’d need to plan a bit more carefully. This would’ve been easier if she had the time to do it before, but now there were so many more things she’d need to account for. Apart from the fact that light apparently hurts them, she’d need to find a new way to get them out without any exposure. There was also the concern of them potentially lashing out at her. There was so many new factors, and it made it so much more difficult, but she was certain that she could do it.

She’d just need more time to plan.


	10. Chapter 10

The king had to admit, he was a bit worried about the outcome of any future tests, a creature like that was something he still needed to study, but he wasn’t willing to risk it by doing some of the tests planned for the future. Perhaps a look into the future was warranted. Asides from possibly reconsidering tests, the king felt some dread over the possibility that he may have trusted the doctor too much. That perhaps they were conspiring against him, it’s unlikely that a mortal like them would find a way to kill him, but the feeling never went away.

Rising from the chair he was sitting in, he left the room and began the walk towards his own quarters. The halls were unusually quiet today, the servants and guards were scarce, though occasionally he did pass a few on his way. It was odd that somehow the servants had managed to find something to busy themselves with, the palace was pristine as it could be on most days, and most servants could be found standing off to the sides in the hallways, talking amongst each other.

Perhaps they were just resting, it was still fairly early into the day. He’d need to clear his thoughts however, as he unsealed the door to his chambers. He resealed it the moment he entered, before placing a sound-dampening charm over the top of it, he mustn’t be disturbed during this.  
He curled into himself on his bed, feeling his thoughts melt away until he was left with an empty blank space. The dream catchers that usually shone brightly in this realm were faded, still visible, but no longer as strong as they once were.

Around the king floated pieces of the future, hard to see as they flashed by faster than one could blink. But he reached out to one, catching it in his claws before melding it to show exactly what he needed to see. For the majority of these testing outcomes, proceeding with them would be fine, and cause minimal damage to his subject, while others needed refining or getting cut completely.

And then, there was something else. Something strange, a piece of the future that was darker than all of the others, covered in cobwebs. The king delved deeper into it, wanting to see what made it stand out so much compared to all the others. He heard it before it became clear in his mind, the sounds of a hammer and writing. 

He could see the doctor, hunched over a table, working on something. Next to them, however, was his experiment, in a place that certainly wasn’t the palace laboratory. It was wrapped in bandages, nothing surprising however, but he moved closer to the doctor, peering at what they had been working on. He saw the spine on the table, cleaned of the blood that would’ve normally covered it, but seemingly replaced with scratches of varying sizes, always on its surface.

On closer inspection of the notes however, he realized what they were trying to do. Something he had forgotten to factor in with his blind trust to the doctor, that possibly they could be plotting to maim him.

He had seen enough of this to know what he should do to counteract this. He pulled himself out of the fragment, before letting himself take a minute to breath and relax in this quiet realm. Until he finally pulled himself out of his meditation, and started on the way to calling the captain of the guard.

He’d sent his guards over to the doctors temporary quarters to search every inch of it for any possible notes and plans to kill him, as well as any weapons they may have made. He had made sure they were not present in their quarters by calling them to a short meeting to discuss future experiments. The king carefully omitted plans that would require use of the various tools in the lab for dissecting, while watching their reactions and movements carefully.

It was an hour or two before he dismissed them, making sure that the guards had ample time to thoroughly search the room and cover their tracks when they were done. He had no doubt that they may very well try and continue with their plans in whatever way possible even without these items, something he’d remedy later.

Perhaps they’d try to escape, leave the palace without him noticing and never return. His experiment was too valuable to leave without proper care and tests of its abilities, he’d need to find measures to prevent escape even if it wasn’t the doctors main goal to leave.

Later that day, he held a meeting with the captain of the guard, telling them to double the amount of guards that patrolled the palace. He didn’t provide insight as to why he needed so many, but it was unneeded when he spoke to his kingsmoulds, constructs that followed his every command without question.

An hour later, around the time when whatever tasks the servants busied themselves with were almost finished, he called in the head servant, ordering them to keep an ear open and report whatever the doctor does while they remain in the palace. The king could see the confusion visible on their face, but whatever questions or concerns they may have had, they didn’t voice.

 

It was finally time for the doctor to execute her plan to escape with the king’s subject. She had tried to pry a name out of both of them, but the human never responded to anything she said, and would only look at her. Meanwhile the king had evaded every question she asked him regarding the human outside of experiments.

Her plan did change, however. The amount of guards patrolling the palace had doubled within the past two weeks, likely due to the amount of letters the king had received about infection reaching his citizens at last. She’d need to be more careful, in both retrieving them and actually managing to leave. She had planned to leave that night, when the majority of the servants were asleep, but the issue of the guards still remained.

The flora that grew over the palace coridoors should be enough to hide them. But it wouldn’t be enough if she couldn’t get the human out without injuring herself, recently they had been much more aggressive. They’d lash out whenever someone approached them, using that awful noise to their advantage to disorient them.  
Fortunately, Cyfre hadn’t been hurt even while handling them, being faster than they were, the servants weren’t as lucky.

It would’ve been easier to get out if the king had called her into the lab for another experiment, and let her take the human ‘back’ to their cell. Though tests had been halted for the past few weeks, she hadn’t been called in to assist with one, only to meet with the king about future tests. Instead she had to move slowly within the halls, avoiding the gazes of the guards, until she reached the cell door.

She broke the seal that had been placed on the door, before creeping into the room. The other human no longer sat within the corner, as if they’d been taken away. There wasn’t any time for her to think about where they might’ve gone, she grabbed the human that still remained, and carefully tucked them into her bag, hoping they’d at least stay quiet long enough for her to get into the palace grounds. 

She made it past the first pairs of the guards, but when she got to the gate, they snatched her bag from her hands, rifling through it until they seized the human. They stared at her for a long time, almost enough for her to run off by herself, but they grabbed her wrist and drug her back into the building. Cyfre was hauled into the throne room, guards blocking any possible exits she could’ve gone through.

The king addressed her, “You should’ve known you’d be caught. Even with everything so carefully planned out, you seemed to forget that I’m always several steps ahead of everything that goes on within this kingdom.” He stepped down from his throne, before taking the human from one of the guards, “I’ll offer you a deal, doctor. You’ll be allowed to leave, given an hour to grab whatever you didn’t put in your bag. But them? They won’t be coming with you. I would suggest you take your freedom, your life isn’t worth one humans. But of course, the choice is yours.”

She’d take his offer, there wasn’t any way she’d be able to get out safely with the human from this room. Even if she did manage to get out, the king would hunt her down, make an example of what happens when someone betrays him.

She was led out of the palace into the stag station, before being sent on her way back to Deepnest. It didn’t feel right to leave them there, under the cruelty of the king, but she was given no other choice but to return back to Deepnest.


End file.
